Temptation Spiral

Read Job 11

Read 2 Samuel 11

David is caught in a downward spiral of temptation. Upon seeing Bathsheba he is temped to lust by his sinful nature. But he doesn't stop there. Next he is tempted to commit adultery with her, and he falls into this temptation. Then he is tempted to hide is sin by trying to arrange for Uriah to go into his tent, to his wife, so that her pregnancy and delivery would look like a natural occurrence of Uriah's visit to his wife. When this doesn't work, David is tempted to cover up his sin by getting rid of the man who stood in his way, that is, by getting her husband killed. David falls for all of these temptations.

We are not immune to sin either. We see the downward spiral of sin at work in our lives. How easy is it to be tempted to keep adding onto the sin. A lie leads to another lie, which leads to another lie. Or, discontent leads to coveting, which leads to driving us toward dishonest gain or theft. Frustration can turn into anger, then into hate. The Devil likes to pile the sins on more and more. Our sinful flesh certainly needs little to no encouragement to go against God. We quickly sin on our own. And the world certainly entices us with everything ungodly.

Even the king of Israel, David, was caught in a terrible sin-spiral. We too shouldn't surmise that we are invincible.

But we should also remember that where sin has increased, grace has increased all the more. We have a loving Savior who was willing (and who did!) to break into our lives, to burst forth in us, and break the cycle of sin, hurt, pain, and dysfunction. Yes, because Christ gave himself on the cross, we who are his can rejoice that we have new life. His grace and forgiveness has the power to intervene, to make us new, to change us, to strengthen us to live in freedom.

We will see that there is forgiveness for David and a new beginning too. We will see that there is forgiveness and life for us as well through Jesus Christ. Now that is certainly something to rejoice about!

Ask Yourself:

Am I currently caught in a sin-spiral? How can I break free?

How can I defend myself against the devil's attacks?

How can I rely on Jesus' forgiveness and strength today?

Pray:

Pray from your heart today concerning your answers to the above questions. Thank Jesus for his forgiveness and ask for his strength to live a better life for him.

Study with me tomorrow,

Pastor Jon

Soli Deo Gloria!